1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automatic sewing machine attachment for positioning a hanger strip or weight in the hem of a vertical blind prior to stitching.
2. Description of the Prior Art
At the present time, fabric type vertical blinds are hemmed manually Typically, the hem is formed by hot melt glue, sonic welding, heat sealing, as well as sewing. Sonic welding or sewing are fairly sophisticated systems however, the steps of folding, loading, inserting or unloading of the hem in the vertical blind are still manually performed This can be time consuming and costly due to operator error resulting in rejection of the finished product.
The sewing process has been automated to the extent of providing a loading station for the vertical blind once the hem is folded which then automatically feeds the hem into the sewing head and the hem ejected upon completion. If a hanger is to be included in the top hem or a weight in the bottom hem, it must be inserted by hand by the operator prior to placing the hem in the loading station for the sewing machine. The edges of the hem must be closed by stitches or glue in order to retain the hanger or weight in the hem. Speed of operation, therefore, is dependent upon the dexterity of a particular operator.